Lawsuit Claims Abuse by Priest at West Texas Churches

SAN ANGELO - The Catholic Diocese of San Angelo, which covers Midland and Odessa, is responding to a lawsuit to claims the Diocese tried to cover up the alleged sexual abuse of a child.

According to the lawsuit, the victim was abused by the late Father David Espitia from 1994 to 2002 beginning when the boy was just eight years old.

"I am dismayed by the claim, that the Diocese, and I personally, are somehow responsible for some claimed sexual abuse of a minor child, by the late Father David Espitia," Bishop Michael D. Pfeifer said in a release to NewsWest9.

Bishop Pfeifer also says that Father Espitia told him about the accusations back in 2003 and that the Diocese followed protocol at the time.

The lawsuit also claims that some of the alleged abuse took place at two Odessa churches.